This country brief provides a snapshot of the introduction and the development of the long-term care system in Japan. It contains a summary and systematic account of the legal beginnings, major reforms and current state of the long-term care system in the country. The report is part of the CRC...

This country report provides a description of the emergence of a health care system under public responsibility in Japan. The inception of the health care system refers to the first legislation stipulating entitlements to medical care. The report also includes a brief description of major health...

In 2011, Japan celebrated the 50th anniversary of its own achievement of universal health coverage (UHC). On this occasion, the government of Japan and the World Bank conceived the idea of undertaking a multi-country study to respond to this growing demand by sharing rich and varied country...

The goals of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) are to ensure that all people can access quality health services, to safeguard all people from public health risks, and to protect all people from impoverishment due to illness, whether from out-of-pocket payments for health care or loss of income...

In health policy, magic bullet answers tend to have more appeal than incremental adjustments. Politicians faced with the daunting issues in healthcare are eager to embrace new ideas promoted by academics and think tanks. However, in implementation, intrinsic flaws in design, such as the...

In 2011, Japan celebrated the 50th anniversary of its own achievement of universal health coverage (UHC). On this occasion, the government of Japan and the World Bank conceived the idea of undertaking a multi-country study to respond to this growing demand by sharing rich and varied country...

The goals of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) are to ensure that all people can access quality health services, to safeguard all people from public health risks, and to protect all people from impoverishment due to illness, whether from out-of-pocket payments for health care or loss of income...

When the Japanese government adopted Western medicine in the late nineteenth century, it left intact the infrastructure of primary care by giving licenses to the existing practitioners and by initially setting the hurdle for entry into medical school low. Public financing of hospitals was kept...

Co-opting physicians to regulate Fee-for-Service (FFS) payment is more feasible and simpler to administer than capitation, Diagnosis-Related Groups (DRGs) and pay-for-performance. The key lies in designing and revising the fee schedule, which not only defines and sets the fee for each item, but...